Tools

Red Fang, Black Tusk, Lord Dying

When: Thu., Nov. 8, 9 p.m. 2012
Price: $12-14

Beyond the shared naming convention of colored canine teeth, Portland's Red Fang and Savannah's Black Tusk are perfectly complementary, both as tour- and labelmates. The acts owe substantial debts to '70s hard rock riffs, even if they reveal that influence in different ways. Red Fang's leaner and cleaner approach shades Valient Thorr-ish riff-metal with Queens of the Stone Age boogie and Soundgarden melody. On their Jack Endino-produced Set the Dial, Black Tusk takes a more pan-metal approach, speeding into thrash and rumbling toward death metal, without shedding the momentum or accessibility of strong riffs. With Lord Dying. —Bryan C. Reed